Many years ago I was invited to a dinner with Dustin Hoffman. And this is what I expected.
Clearly, I’m not a celebrity, and I don’t have cool actor acquaintances, but my friend was on the board of the Chicago Steppenwolf Theater Company and Dustin was in town to star in Death of a Salesman.
My friend was invited to dinner and her husband didn’t want to go so…I got to be her date. Continue reading
Friday night we hosted kind of a Fancy Dinner.
This is the kind of dinner where you can’t just make a casserole and you have appetizers and you should serve the salad as a separate course but I never do because I’m afraid someone won’t like it and won’t eat it and we’ll both be embarrassed, so to save face I serve it with the rest of the dinner. I plate the dinner and then guests can just move food around and spread it out like a squirrel hiding nuts all over the yard if they don’t care for it.
They could also quietly feed it to the cat or dog under the table like Maggie and I did at the home of some crazy british ladies in Kenya once, but we don’t have a cat or dog so that’s out. Continue reading
It’s Friday! Hope you guys have a lovely, refreshing weekend and that April showers don’t keep you from a long bike ride or run or walk. Hope you enjoy some of these morsels that have delighted me this week too!
Last weekend John and I had the privilege of preaching together on relationships and baggage. (What could be more fun than unpacking your dirty clothes in front of a couple thousand people, right?)*
Anyway, afterwards we were touched by how many people bravely shared their baggage with us. And a friend sent this song by Francesca Batistelli called If We’re Honest, saying she thought it went perfectly with the message. I love it and I hope you will too. Continue reading
When someone criticizes me or my husband John I think, “Oh, how thoughtful. They clearly love us. They have examined the plank in their own eye and are now graciously pointing out the itsy bitsy teeny tiny spec in ours. That is sooooooo lovely!”
Kind of like surreptitiously motioning to a friend that they have a smudge of ketchup in the corner of their mouth while they’re eating – you know…in a way that doesn’t embarrass them.
Or maybe not. Maybe I stew and think how very unfair life is, and that thing they said I said isn’t what I meant at all, and Come ON already!
Maybe I conduct imaginary conversations in my head where I have witty putdowns and “Ha HA! Take THAT’s!”
Maybe I pray that all the critics would be exiled to Bolivia and that Donald Trump would build a wall so that they can’t get back in. Continue reading
Last week I was looking for something in our storage room – the one that my delightfully OCD husband keeps in tip-top shape. It is not musty, or damp, or basement-y so I feel like it’s ok to go there.
But the other day, as I was looking, I saw, back behind an old dog dish, the outline of something dark and suspicious that I thought could possibly be Something I Do Not Allow. Continue reading
On Fridays I try to post just a few of the things that have delighted or inspired me, and resources you might like – the “soul food” from my week.
I would love to hear about your “soul food” in the comments too! Just remember, if you’re posting for the first or second time it won’t appear immediately, but it WILL show up eventually 🙂
Monday I wrote a hard post that many of you resonated with. On Tuesday, Ruth Haley Barton posted an eReflection from her excellent book, Life Together in Christ. that is a great follow-up to my post. You can read her thoughts here: Continue reading
The other day it snowed again. Yes, in case you’ve lost track it’s the end of March.
The year we moved to Minnesota there were flurries on May first.
This is just so wrong. But we’re a hardy folks up here in Lake Wobegon country don’tcha know.
But this morning the sun came out and it’s supposed to hit 40 degrees and I saw a bunny hopping across my path so maybe God isn’t dead.
The thing is, when life is ugly (and even when it’s beautiful), I think the most important spiritual discipline is paying attention – being wholeheartedly present in the moment and alert to God. Continue reading
Two weeks ago my best friend from college called on a Sunday afternoon to tell me she has been diagnosed with ALS.
Yes, that ALS – the horrific Lou Gehrig’s disease that eats away at your muscles til you are a rag doll of your former self.
Arms and legs progressively stop functioning . It also impacts your voice and breathing; lifespan shortens as complications related to lung function intrude.
I simply could. not. deal. I couldn’t accept that my vibrant full-of-LIFE friend with the most infectious laugh on earth might have to experience this crippling horror.
Instead of leaning in, I wanted to lean out. Instead of turning towards, I wanted to turn away. Continue reading
Two weeks ago I stood on the shore of the Sea of Galilee at Capernaum where Jesus did most of His ministry.
And I listened.
The breeze ruffled the water and ironically, a rooster crowed in the distance.
Was the Lord reminding me of my “Peter-ness”? My tendencies to run fast and crash hard and get so excited that I don’t make wise choices? Continue reading
A couple of weeks ago this book showed up in my mail.
I flipped through it, but didn’t read closely til a few days later when I was looking out at the bare space and pile of stump chips where our beautiful maple tree used to be, reflecting on the losses in my life this past year. (and yes, that is snow coming down in the picture, making this all the more depressing!)
I picked up Broken Hallelujahs again, and found such relevance, especially for this Holy Week. Continue reading
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